Convicted offender accused of sexually assaulting 2 boys

MADRID TOWNSHIP, Maine — A local convicted sex offender faces charges that he sexually assaulted two boys in Maine and Massachusetts.

John A. Fahnley, 57, of East Madrid Road was arrested Tuesday on two felony counts of gross sexual assault, Lt. Niles Yeaton of the Franklin County Sheriff Department said Wednesday.

Fahnley posted $25,000 cash bail Tuesday to be released from jail. He is scheduled to appear Jan. 25, 2013, in Franklin County Superior Court in Farmington.

A conviction on a sexual assault charge is punishable by up to 30 years in prison.

Fahnley is a 10-year registrant on the Maine Sexual Offender Registry. According to that website, Fahnley was convicted Nov. 18, 2003, of rape and abuse of a child under 16 in Massachusetts. He was sentenced the same day to 3½ years of probation, according to the site.

In regards to Tuesday’s arrest, Yeaton said both boys are under age 16 and disclosed sexual assaults by Fahnley to police in Massachusetts. The incidents occurred in 2008 through 2010 reportedly in Maine and Massachusetts, he said.

Sheriff Detective David St. Laurent investigated and arrested Fahnley, he said.